Techniques For Improving Your Nonverbal Communication Skills

Techniques for Improving Your Nonverbal Communication
Skills
Nonverbal communication is important in the workplace because it affects the work

environment. What you communicate nonverbally can expose how you feel. If your nonverbal
communications skills are poor, you may be communicating negativity and making your
coworkers uncomfortable. To improve your nonverbal skills, you must first identify the areas
where you are lacking.
Eye Contact
Establish eye contact when speaking to others. When you make direct eye contact, it shows the
other party that you’re interested in what he is saying. If you must give a presentation at work,
establish eye contact with the audience. It tell them that you are confident in what you are
presenting. Making direct eye contact provides others with the comfort needed to communicate
with you in return.
Facial Expressions
Your facial expressions convey your emotions. Facial expressions are typically universal, which
means they convey the same message globally. A frowning person is usually upset. Offer a smile
when talking to someone. This tells people that you are happy or in a good mood. It also creates
an atmosphere with warmth and friendliness, allowing others to feel comfortable.
Space
Pay attention to your proximity to others. Different cultures view proximity in various ways, so take
notice if the person you’re communicating with is uncomfortable. This could mean that you are
standing too close, and should create some distance between the two of you. The amount of
physical space given can convey many emotions. For example, a person who is behaving
aggressively is probably standing very close to the other person.
Posture
Look at your posture. Slouching shows that you are not interested in what a person is saying.
Your body movement is also important. For example, swinging your leg back and forth while
sitting in a meeting tells others you are impatient, bored and uninterested. Sit up straight and face
others when talking.
Tones and Sounds
Your tone of voice and the sounds you make can communicate your thoughts to others without
your even speaking. If you receive directions from a manager and immediately grunt, you are
showing your manager that you do not agree with what he said. Your tone or sounds can inform
people of your anger, frustration or sarcasm. Avoid sighing repetitively or speaking in a
high-pitched voice. Speak softly and calmly.
Space. Viewed as the area surrounding one's body, space is an individual matter. It
is dynamic and varies with situation, as well as from culture to culture. Several

authors describe the early 1960s groundbreaking work of Hall in the area of
proxemics, the study of human use and perception of physical space, both personal
and social. Three dimensions of space are generally recognized in western culture:
the intimate zone (0 to 18 inches, where another's odor, heat, and touch are
experienced), the personal zone (18 inches to 3-4 feet, where communication
between friends and acquaintances occur), and the social/public zone (3-4 feet to
6-12 feet, where impersonal business is conducted). The business of nursing
requires interactions in the intimate or personal distance zones. Additionally, Hall
categorized humans into two spatial groups: contact and noncontact. People from a
contact orientation tend to view noncontact others as being shy, impersonal,
impolite, and boring. Conversely, noncontact people can view contact others as
impolite, pushy, obnoxious, and bossy.
Individuals usually do not have a conscious awareness of their personal space

requirements and frequently have difficulties understanding the cultural requirements
[1]
of others. Proximity to another as a form of friendliness, such as in Latino cultures,
may be perceived as invasion of personal space by an American, Canadian, or
Briton. Effective and culturally competent nurses respond to patient cues, thus
maximizing comfort. Patients who step back, avoid direct eye contact, or pull the
chair away from the nurse are sending a message for additional space requirements.
In the most basic terms, the use of space is a form of nonverbal communication, a
[1]
function of how much intrusion by others is considered acceptable. Multiple
cultures interact comfortably in small spaces; others do not. The author (MJ) recalls
waiting for dinner in a busy London neighborhood eatery. In this setting, her party of
two was seriously discouraged from occupying an entire booth, which was a
perceived waste of precious space. It would have made a fascinating cross-cultural
portrait: two uncomfortable American women, used to having their own "territory,"
joining two nonchalant British businessmen, very accustomed to shared space in a
crowded city.

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Techniques for Improving Your Nonverbal Communication

Nonverbal communication is important in the workplace because it affects the work

Tones and Sounds

Individuals usually do not have a conscious awareness of their personal space

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